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Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse
In this novella Rebecca Roanhorse once again shows off her world-building skills. I was intrigued from the very start by the genre-defying world Roanhorse envisions in Tread of Angels. The story unfolds in Goetia, a town ruled by the mighty Order of the Archangels that is ‘segregated’ between the Elects and the Fallen. Celeste, our…
3.5 STARS, Adult, alternate history, amateur detective, AMERICAN AUTHOR, angels, casinos & gambling, dark fantasy, DEMONS, fantastic worldbuilding, FANTASY, female authors, gods, gritty aesthetics, indigenous author, it’s about the *aesthetics*, lesbian side characters, lgbtq+ side, MURDER, murder investigation, MYSTERY, Native American & First Nation authors, NOVELLA/SHORT STORY, PARANORMAL, published in 2022, queer side characters, read in 2022, Rebecca Roanhorse, ROMANCE, SISTERS, STEAMPUNK, Tread of Angels, URBAN FANTASY, western -
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh
The YA genre seems saturated by heroines who are (allegedly) neither beautiful nor intelligent but they are spunky and clumsy and bursting with goodness. Well, I have had my fill of these girls. Wholesome, vanilla, inoffensive, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea is a relatively enjoyable YA read that tone-wise will definitely appeal to…
1st pov, 3 STARS, adventure, Axie Oh, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, curses, FANTASY, female authors, ghosts/spirits, gods, HISTORICAL FICTION, korean american author, korean inspired setting, MAGIC, My reviews, myths, Not Like Other Girls, published in 2022, read in 2022, reading, RETELLINGS, ROMANCE, sea, spirit realm, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, weak worldbuilding, YOUNG ADULT -
The Many Deaths of Laila Starr #1 by Ram V.
A Neil Gaimanesque sort of comic (think Good Omens & Sandman) set in contemporary India and featuring Hindu gods. Death is fired from her job and takes up residence in the recently deceased body of Laila Starr. There is a prophecy of sorts involving a child who apparently is destined to make humans immortal. Once…
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Storm of Locusts by Rebecca Roanhorse
Usually, I don’t go back on DNFs (there’s plenty more books in the sea and all that) but I also get that sometimes my enjoyment of a book depends on me getting to read it at the ‘right time’. The reason why I’d DNFed Storm of Locusts after reading just a chapter or so was…
1st pov, 4.25 stars, action, Adult, America, American, AMERICAN AUTHOR, apocalyptic, bi side characters, Black & Black heritage authors, FANTASY, female authors, FOLKLORE, found family, friendships, gods, indigenous, indigenous author, lgbtq+ side, MAGIC, monsters, myths, native american & first nation, Native American & First Nation authors, PARANORMAL, post-apocalyptic, published in 2019, read in 2021, Rebecca Roanhorse, Religion, road trip, SPECULATIVE FICTION, Storm of Locusts, the sixth world, the sixth world series, URBAN FANTASY -
Black Water Sister by Zen Cho
Having loved Cho’s Sorcerer Royal books I was so hyped to read this…and now that I have, I am high-key disappointed. Whereas Sorcerer Royal is a fantasy of manners (a la Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell), Black Water Sister is an urban fantasy with a contemporary setting. The premise and cover for this novel definitely…
1st pov, 3 STARS, Adult, adventure, America, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, Contemporary, curses, f/f, family, favourite authors, female authors, ghosts, ghosts/spirits, gods, HUMOR, intergenerational, LESBIAN, lgbtq+, LGBTQ+ Author, Malaysia, Malaysian author, millennial, My reviews, netgalley, PARANORMAL, published in 2021, queer, read in 2021, Religion, sapphic, URBAN FANTASY, Zen Cho -
The Neil Gaiman Reader: Selected Fiction by Neil Gaiman
The Neil Gaiman Reader showcases Gaiman’s range as an author. Gaiman moves between genres and tones like no other. From funny fairy-talesque stories to more ambiguous narratives with dystopian or horror elements. While I have read most of his novels and a few of his novellas I hadn’t really ‘sunk’ my teeth in his short…
1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, Adult, adventure, America, American Gods, angels, books about writers, British author, curses, DEMONS, DETECTIVE, different styles (1st/2nd/3rd povs), dystopia, england, FAIRY TALES, FAIRYLAND, FANTASY, favourite authors, film industry, FOLKLORE, gods, great storytelling, HISTORICAL FICTION, HORROR, HUMOR, lgbtq+ side, m/m side, male authors, morality, myths, Neil Gaiman, PARANORMAL, published in 2020, RETELLINGS, SCI-FI, short stories, SPECULATIVE FICTION, story within a story, Storytelling, The Neil Gaiman Reader, The Neil Gaiman Reader: Selected Fiction, URBAN FANTASY, what ifs -
An Ordinary Wonder by Buki Papillon
“With no words, Yeyemi says, I am the strength and fire in you, I am everything that is and was and every will be. You are the stuff my stars are made of. I am you and you are me.” An Ordinary Wonder tells a moving coming of age, one that will definitely appeal to…
1990s, 20th century, 3 STARS, An Ordinary Wonder, Black & Black heritage authors, boarding/private school, Buki Papillon, bullying, CHILDHOOD, coming of age, curses, family, female authors, FOLKLORE, friendships, gender identity, gods, growing up, identity, intersex, lgbtq+, MAGICAL REALISM, mothers & daughters, Nigeria, Nigerian author, published in 2021, read in 2020, twins, YOUNG ADULT -
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
“A smart Teek survives the storm, but a wise Teek avoids storms altogether.” It took me awhile to warm up to Black Sun and during its first half I worried that I would find myself once again in the ‘unpopular’ opinion camp. As I’d read and liked Rebecca Roanhorse’s Trail of Lightning I was hoping…
3.75 stars, 3rd pov, adventure, AMERICAN AUTHOR, between earth and sky, BISEXUAL/PANSEXUAL, Black Sun, disabilities, FANTASY, female authors, FOLKLORE, gods, great storytelling, high fantasy, indigenous, lgbtq+, MAGIC, morality, myths, native american & first nation, Native American & First Nation authors, non-binary side characters, political intrigue, pre-Columbian inspired setting, prophecies, published in 2020, queer, read in 2020, Rebecca Roanhorse, ship, voyage -
American Gods by Neil Gaiman — book review
“Gods die. And when they truly die they are unmourned and unremembered. Ideas are more difficult to kill than people, but they can be killed, in the end.” It isn’t surprising that American Gods is regarded as one of the genre-bending novels of all time. Over the course of 500 pages Neil Gaiman deftly blends…
2000s, 3rd pov, 5 STARS, ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE, Adult, adventure, affairs, afterlife, ambiguous protagonist, America, American, American Gods, BOOK REVIEW, Booklr, British author, Chicago, Contemporary, DEATH, Dreams, FANTASY, fathers & sons, favourite authors, FOLKLORE, gay side characters, gods, great storytelling, heist, HISTORICAL FICTION, history, Illinois, lgbtq+ side, MAGIC, MAGICAL REALISM, male authors, minnesota, MYSTERY, myths, Neil Gaiman, PARANORMAL, prison, published in 2001, re-reads, read in 2016, read in 2020, Religion, road trip, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, SPECULATIVE FICTION, story within a story, Storytelling, SUPERNATURAL, tennessee, URBAN FANTASY, violence, Wisconsin, zombies & undead -
Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor — book review
Strange the Dreamer is a wonderfully imaginative novel. Meditations and discussions on storytelling, dreams, and myths are not only embedded in the narrative but shape the very way in which the two main characters view their world and themselves. “Lazlo owned nothing, not one single thing, but from the first, the stories felt like his…
3.75 stars, 3rd pov, adventure, AMERICAN AUTHOR, BOOK REVIEW, BOOK REVIEWS, Booklr, dreamers, Dreams, FAIRY TALES, fairytalesque prose, FANTASY, ghosts/spirits, gods, high fantasy, insta love, Laini Taylor, MAGIC, myths, PUBLISHED IN 2017, purply prose, READ IN 2019, ROMANCE, Strange the Dreamer, YOUNG ADULT
luce [is reading] 